Financial problems can be the undoing of family relationships. Common problems include hiding debt, or assigning blame  when debt reaches critical levels.  If you’re having problems with credit card debt, don’t procrastinate.

Credit Card Debt and Divorce Court: Don’t Go There

Typical scenarios compromising relationships include hiding debt, running up unmanageable credit card debt, or using shopping as retribution toward a partner’s slights, real or imagined. High credit card balances can grow quickly due to accruing interest and fees.

Debt Management, Debt Consolidation, and Credit Counseling

Homeowners may qualify for home equity loans or lines of credit that can be used for paying off high cost consumer debt. Your ability to borrow against home equity depends on how much home equity you have; this is determined by what your home is worth and how much you  owe against it.

If you can’t borrow against your home, you may qualify for a debt consolidation loan. Financial institutions are not as wiling to make personal loans for debt consolidation, but it’s worth a try if you have good credit .

Anyone carrying major credit cards knows about balance transfers; in an effort to take your business from your current credit card issuers, companies offer new credit cards with low or no interest charged for transferring your balances to the new card. Before making balance transfers, read the fine print for determining actual costs. If you have problems managing credit card debt, balance transfers may lead to more debt.

If you’re in too deep or cannot otherwise commit to paying down credit card debt, a credit counseling and debt consolidation program can help in three ways:

• Evaluating your income and obligations for creating a cash-based budget: You’ll learn about how to budget according to your income for meeting household expenses without using plastic to get through the week before pay day. Credit counselors can show you how to budget responsibly, including saving for emergencies and retirement.
• Contacting creditors and negotiating affordable repayment terms: Credit counseling services work with credit card issuers for developing affordable repayment plans. Although your balances owed won’t be reduced, your creditors may agree to reduce interest rates and fees; this allows you to reduce debt faster.
• Developing an affordable repayment and debt consolidation plan: After your creditors have agreed to repayment terms,  your credit counselor will develop a repayment plan. When you agree to the terms of the plan, you’ll  pay a specified amount to your credit counseling service as scheduled. Your credit counseling service deducts a fee for its services and sends the rest to your creditors. All you have to do is pay your credit counseling service as agreed.

Money trouble creates problems in all aspects of your life. Getting debt help can help with managing credit card debt.